Introduction to Biotechnologies and Biomimetics for Civil Engineering - Biotechnologies and Biomimetics for Civil Engineering - page 13

insulating properties are reviewed. The chapter also includes an overview on green
building details including its costs.
Chapter 7 concerns the use of microalgae photobioreactors (PhBR) as inno-
vative construction systems for the production of bio-energy. An overview on
photobioreactors is given. The concept of architectural photobioreactors (A-PhBR)
is presented and discussed. Examples of PhBR in facades formed from blocks of
translucent glass and of horizontal PhBR for roof and urban fountains are pre-
sented. Extensive graphical details are also presented.
The reduction of indoor air pollutants through biotechnology constitutes the
subject of Chap. 8 . The chapter starts with an analysis on the importance of indoor
air pollution and its impact on health costs and human dead's followed by a review
on current practices and the history of bioremediation on indoor air. The different
air pollutants (volatile organic compounds, carbon dioxide, and others) are dis-
cussed. A comparison between physiochemical and biological methods are carried
out. Hybrid physiochemical-biological systems, active biofiltration of indoor air,
and phytoremediation and horticultural biotechnology are discussed. Consider-
ations on the health benefits of indoor plants unrelated to air quality are included.
Microbial systems as well as biological indoor air cleaning commercial systems
are reviewed.
Chapter 9 deals with the mechanisms underlying bioinspired self-cleaning
(hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity) and to the fields of application of these effects.
Common concepts on wettability are reminded. The different mechanisms of
self-cleaning are reviewed and detailed. Examples of hydrophilic and superoleo-
phobic plants and animals are given. The chapter concludes with a section on
production techniques and applications which presents examples of biomimetic
self-cleaning surfaces, and give details on how they were created.
Chapter 10 reviews the development of the bio-inspired concept on bridge
design in the past two decades from two major forms: stationary forms and
movable forms. The objective is to show how the inspiration from the biological
world has influenced recent bridge designs and discusses how the bio-inspired idea
could transform into a new language for the future bridge design industry. Four
major challenges of the marriage between biology and engineering were discussed
and latest endeavor on each aspect was presented.
Bioinspired sensors for structural health monitoring is the subject of Chap. 11 .
Topics ranging from bio-inspired algorithms, creature-like robots, and skin-like
sensors are presented.
Chapter 12 deals with bioinspired, flexible structures and materials. The
potential of biomimetics in form finding and the development of structural systems
based on constant or reversible elastic deformation are discussed. Elastic building
materials and biomimetic abstraction techniques are introduced and two case
studies are provided.
Bioinspired concrete is the subject of Chap. 13 . An overview of Earths minerals
is presented. Several bioinspired cements are covered. The environmental chal-
lenges with cements and concrete are revewed.